Donald Trump's bizarre baby incentive has people making a terrifying comparison

One of Donald Trump's possible bizarre baby incentives to help 'combat' the declining birthrate in the United States has people making a seriously eerie comparison.

According to a March report from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the US total fertility rate has declined from 2.1 births per woman since 1990 - a figure which is enough to fully replace the current population - to 1.62 births per woman in 2023.

So, several groups have now reportedly pitched a series of ideas to address the nation's shrinking population - something which politicians are no doubt fretting over, given the impact it will have on the economy and the social safety net.

But what are these new baby incentive ideas, you ask, and why are people so disturbed by them?

Well, for some context, the New York Times reports that pitched ideas included a $5,000 'baby bonus' for new mothers as well as a 'Motherhood Medal' for those with six children or more, expanded child tax credits, funding menstrual cycle education and reserving 30 percent of Fulbright scholarships for people who are married or have children.

Such ideas stem from a movement concerned with declining birthrates - something which Vice President JD Vance and Elon Musk, who has had 13 children with three different women, along with claims he's fathered a 14th child with author Ashley St. Clair - have openly campaigned for.

After catching light of such reports, people couldn't help but point out the unsettling comparisons being the baby incentives and Margaret Atwood's dystopian novels which later became adapted into a hit TV series, The Handmaid's Tale.

The story follows a woman named June living in 'Gilead' - America's new patriarchal regime.

Set in the near future, most women are mysteriously sterile, and the series follows a handful who have proven fertile and are forced to be the surrogates - or 'handmaids' - for the government's leaders.

The show also delves into themes including; gender hierarchy, gender roles, reproductive freedom (or lack of), fertility struggles, religion and theocracy, identity, freedom, rebellion, and survival - just to name a few.

One social media user wrote: "Trump’s baby incentives are giving Handmaid’s Tale.

"$5K first time child credits, IVF expansions, medals for 6+ kids? That’s not support it’s state-sanctioned breeding. If you restrict abortion and reward fertility, you’re not pro-family. You’re pro-control.

"Blessed be the fruit, huh?"

They added in a follow-up comment: "And just to add the concern isn’t about helping families. It’s about who gets the help, and why.

"When support is only for married moms having their first kid, and when a 'Motherhood Medal' is only for women who have six or more kids AND are married that’s not inclusive. That's incentivising a specific kind of motherhood.

"Meanwhile, there’s no push for universal childcare, paid leave, or support for single moms, LGBTQ+ parents, or people who can’t have children. Support should uplift everyone."

A second echoed: "Blessed be the fruit... we are now at The Handmaids Tale portion of this dumpster fire."

"Think he has been watching too much of The Handmaids Tale," another chimed in, referencing Trump.

And a final social media user wondered: "Is he going to pay for their healthcare, education, put a roof over their heads (paying taxes and insurance that goes with home ownership), and let's not forget feeding them until they leave the nest. Uhm, yeah, no thank you."

It's pretty important to note that Trump, who has previously dubbed himself the 'fertilisation president' and has five children with three different women, has long preached the notion of a 'nuclear family' with key motivations behind cultivating a 'baby boom'.

Project 2025, the policy blueprint that has forecasted much of the 78-year-old Republican's agenda so far, discusses family issues before anything else.

It opens its first chapter with a promise to 'restore the family as the centrepiece of American life'.

The Times explains that much of the movement is shaped around promoting a very specific idea of what constitutes a family - namely one that includes marriage between a man and a woman.

It notably leaves out many families that don’t conform to traditional gender roles or family structures.

White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, said in a statement that Trump - who has described himself as 'the most pro-life president in American history' - 'is proudly implementing policies to uplift American families'.

"The President wants America to be a country where all children can safely grow up and achieve the American dream," she added. "As a mother myself, I am proud to work for a president who is taking significant action to leave a better country for the next generation."